


Never letting go

by AwkwardBlueFish



Category: Batfamily - Fandom, Batman - Fandom, DC - Fandom, Red Robin - Fandom, Robin - Fandom
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Near Death, Tims a good brother, a clean slate for Timmy and Dami
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-22
Updated: 2019-07-22
Packaged: 2020-07-10 20:36:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,171
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19911823
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AwkwardBlueFish/pseuds/AwkwardBlueFish
Summary: “Hey, Damian, look at me. I got you, okay? I’ve got you.” Tim says gently, gazing into a single ocean green eye that can’t hide the tears brimming at the edge. He doesn’t dare move. “You’ll be okay, I’m not letting go, okay? B? Can anyone hear me?”—A mission goes awry and Tim is the only thing from keeping Damian from dying. He won’t let that happen, not again.





	Never letting go

**Author's Note:**

> Please don’t kill me!

“Hey, Damian, look at me. I got you, okay? _I’ve got you._ ” Tim says gently, gazing into a single ocean green eye that can’t hide the tears brimming at the edge. He doesn’t dare move. “You’ll be okay, I’m not letting go, okay? B? Can anyone hear me?”

Static crackles over the comms and Tim bites his lip hard before forcing his teeth away from the flesh. The static had cleared for a second, so Tim thought, and that was a good sign. It could’ve easily been his imagination or maybe the smoke was getting to him. He let’s a tentative smile cross his lips. “I think I heard someone that time.”

Damian gazes back up at, domino cracked in half and hair a mess with the wind. His eyes are scared, Tim can see it as clear as day. No one can hide fear, not when Tim knows when to look for it. “Y-you think?” Damian’s lip trembles before he hardens his jaw ever so slightly. “That’s not good enough, Red Robin.”

Tim nearly wants to laugh. This was a crap situation, it had been from the very beginning. A hostage case and a dozen of low lifes had made it a tricky situation from the very beginning. Robin and him had managed to free the hostages, far too easily. The gang had attacked after, no genius had to guess it was a trap. The endless sworn of thugs had made it that much harder and the bomb had made it impossible for just the two of them. 

The fighting had set of the bomb and the gang took their chance at escape, the ones that survived the blast, that is. It had blown apart the floor and the rickety wooden floor had collapsed as well as a couple of beams - creating a fall to the concrete below that wasn’t survivable from this height. And Robin was lucky enough not to get caught in the blast but unlucky enough and got tangled up by the red life net and got pulled over the hole in the floor. 

Tim had barley managed to catch him and his heart was still hammering in chest. That’s where they were now, with Tim using one burned hand to keep himself from going over, the other keeping Damian from certain death.

“That doesn’t matter now Damian, no one unwanted can hear us.” Tim assures, lips dry as he internally curses at the world. Damian was just a child. Just a kid. This wasn’t fair. 

Damian scoffs but it’s _shaky_ and _nothing_ like normal. He attempts to move his other arm - trapped in the net and broke from skidding across the wood - and failing. “Re- Drake, I’m going to fall.”

It’s a statement but Tim doesn’t give a damn. Because he isn’t letting go, he’s not letting his little brother fall because he can’t lose him again. Damian doesn’t deserve to die, not again. “No you’re not. You know why? Because I’m not letting you go.”

“I’m going to fall.” Damian repeats and Tim hates how small he sounds right now. The tears that were brimming begin to fall and Tim’s grip tightens. “You can’t hold me forever, you can’t and this net isn’t letting me move and, I, I think somethings caught onto it and-. You can’t hold me forever Tim.”

Tim frowns and his brow furrows in defiance. “Yes I can.” Tim insists, and he will. He’ll hold onto Damian forever because he isn’t letting go. He won’t. His name, his first name, from those trembling lips leaves a hollow feeling in his chest and he closes his eyes and sucks in a breath before snapping them open. He won’t let go. 

Damian lets out a hiccup and it’s close between a laugh and a sob and Tim feels a tear slide down his cheek. “I don’t want you to let go, Tim.” His breathing hitches and Tim hates how scared Damian truly is. “I don’t- I don’t want to die again. I don’t want to die and leave everyone behind again. I want to s-see everyone, I want to be hugged by Richard. I want Jay to annoy me and pull pranks with Stephanie. I-I wanna see father and Alfred smile and I want to learn how to use the computer like you and Barbara.” Damian sobs, helpless. They are both extremely helpless. “I don’t want t-to die, Timmy.”

“You’re not going to die, Dami.” Tim says, vision blurring at the lack of promise. “You’re gonna see all those things, Dami and do all tho-“

He slips.

They both slip a few inches before he grips onto the beam tighter and retightens his hold on Damian. Damian lets out a small heart wrenching sob mixed between a wail and leans is forehead against their hands, squeezing his eyes closed.

“I can’t- I can’t do this.” Damian whispers, voice shaking and, dammit, now their both crying. “I don’t want to die but, I just- I can’t do this, Tim.”

“Yes you can,” Tim gasps out, fingers turning numb and cold. “Your my little brother and you have done so much and I know you can do this. I’m not letting go, Dami. We can do this.”

Damian shakes his head and Tim can see his chin scrunching up and his throat bobbing up and down as he swallows his sobs. He’s still trying to be so strong, even when he doesn’t need to be. 

“Just a little longer, Dami. Just a little longer, kiddo. Please- can anybody hear me! Please, god, let somebody copy!”

The comm crackles again. Just like before. And his arms are stiff, fingers cramped and burning, muscles stretched and tight and his heart sinks. This can’t be it, he won’t let this be it.

_“-opy! Re- obin, I- opy!”_

Relief flushed through his very being and Tim hands his head in exhaustion, tears slipping down his cheeks and a laugh breaks through his lips. “Oracle, Damian and I are trapped on top of the building.” Tim meets Damian startled green eyes with a smile. Thank god. “We’re in a situation, a bad one. We need assurance asap.”

_“W- on our way! R - d, hang-“_

Hearing Barbara’s voice in his ear gives him new strength, new resilience. His grip tightens, on the beam and on his baby brother. 

“Hear that, Dami? You’re going to be just fine.”

Damian’s face scrunches and more tears slip down his red and ash covered cheeks. They leave a clean path in their wake and Tim smiles at his brother. A clean path, that’s much needed. No more useless bickering. No more. Damian turns his face into his arms and cries.

“It’s okay, Damian. I’ve got you.”

And he’s never letting go.

A few minutes later and Damian escapes Dick’s death grip to hug Tim with everything he’s got. Tim hugs back just as fiercely, eyes screwed shut as he buries his face in his brothers hair.

A clean slate. That’s what they need. 

Tim smiles.

**Author's Note:**

> Man, I haven’t written in a while! I hope this suffices!


End file.
